I'm in that county (El Dorado), and real estate prices are plummeting here. Might be some real home-buying opportunities in the near future for people without money trees. (Of course, if banks just aren't giving loans to much of anyone, that's no help.)

In a redwood grove in the country of unincorporated Sebastopol. I love Sebastopol and love the redwoods and would ideally like to live on plenty of land where we could build our own home, be submersed in nature, be close to the ocean and have plenty of room for the kids to romp around and explore, safely.

Probably West Marin County--Point Reyes, Bolinas, Stinson Beach, etc...-- because it's so gorgeous and it's a reasonable distance to S.F.--and I need my city fix.

Hi ya'll! I'm a native chicoan, transplanted to Vancouver, Canada for the last 10 years (including a magical year on bowen island) and now we're in New Zealand for a year or two...

when we come back to north america (family and all that jazz) we'd like to live in California for a while, or maybe forever, to be near family and friends there. West Marin county is home to one of the companies that my dh could work for, and I've just been checking out that area a little more closely...

is it really just insanely expensive to live in any area there at all? are there any regions that aren't? My dream would be a somewhat rural/greenish area that wasn't too far from the whole Lucas empire there -- ideally under 30 minutes commute each way... does that exist? we're renters, paying off debt, and will arrive back in CA *hopefully* debt free, but not likely to have any savings to speak of, though my husband's industry pays well, we've just always had too much debt to feel the rewards of that...(student/stay at home mom pair for years, musician before that = debt)

Big Sur & West Marin are so beautiful. They would be fantastic places to live. Point Reyes also has nice, local food, too. It's hard to say, though. I also like a lot of sunshine. Maybe on several acres somewhere in the Napa Valley on a hillside with a huge garden & vineyards. I also keep tossing about the idea of moving back to San Francisco, though. I can't decide if I'm a city girl or want to live on several acres in the middle of nowhere with lots of gardens, a few chickens and let the children run around all day.

It's not technically Northern CA, but Santa Cruz would be my first choice--hands down-- then Carmel, then Big Sur or Mendocino. I used to live in Santa Cruz (two houses from Seabright Beach) and I miss it daily.

I really do like Sacramento, though. it's a good compromise for us and I have been successful in my career here, which would be more difficult to accomplish in smaller communities.

I grew up in Stockton (I'll be back there for the summer) and if we could move back to California, our dream is Humbolt or Arcata. I think I might like living in Berkeley but city life gets to me, I do know that I'd love to get my PhD from there. Go Bears! I feel pretty lucky that there's a family house in San Francisco so I have a nice place to stay whenever I go to the city. I truly need to spend more time in Yosemite, but I don't think I could ever live in the area. My friend was living in Merced and I did not like what I heard about it...

Exactly where we live now...Pacifica. It's 15 minutes from The City, so we both work there and make City money. Right now we live 20 feet from the ocean and about 100 feet from the pier. It's beautiful for sure and the people are nicer than the city. It's a laid back, hippie, surfer town.

We just found a SMALL two bedroom house for rent that we'll move into in 3 weeks for guess how much?

$1950/month!!!

But it's worth it to live here, we think.

Beth- WOHM -Madly in love with my Wife- SAHMandSophia, born 11/2/10, at home! Expressing love, one ounce at a time!

In a redwood grove in the country of unincorporated Sebastopol. I love Sebastopol and love the redwoods and would ideally like to live on plenty of land where we could build our own home, be submersed in nature, be close to the ocean and have plenty of room for the kids to romp around and explore, safely.

Mill Valley, San Anselmo, or Muir Beach (maybe Stinson Beach, but I like that Muir is closer!) are all pretty ideal to me. I really like Pacifica as well. I love the combination of anywhere that is close to the water, and close to the city!

I'm in Sacramento, transplant from Baltimore, and you know....I really like it here!!! I like being close to Tahoe and close enough to visit SF in a day trip without dealing with the horrid traffic of the Bay Area.

I guess if I HAD to pick a place other than Sacto., I'd probably say Truckee - because I'd be *IN* the snow and be able to teach my kids to snowboard in our own yard. Plus, the summer's are cool and beautiful there.

I live in Pacific Grove on the Monterey Peninsula and honestly it is one of the most beautiful areas in the entire world. On top of that we have this amazing small-town feel and mentality. It's really great. I just don't know if I will ever be able to buy a house here.

We moved to Oregon from California 1.5 years ago. But if we could pick somewhere to live in Northern California again, it would be back in Pacific Grove. Maybe Carmel. But we loved Pacific Grove. We just couldn't afford it on one income.